Just another day in paradise

Zewnten said:

Best wishes with the move, appreciate your help. How are you going to break the news to your customers?

Click to expand...

Word spreads like wildfire so yesterday morning I hit it head on and rode around letting them know what my plan was and that I’d still be around until my current home sells. Some of them I dreaded telling because I also consider them friends but everyone took it well. If I were in their shoes I’d want as much notice as possible.

Sometimes when you are a nice guy and give notice, they know they won't need you anymore and don't pay invoices.

mitch504 said:

Sometimes when you are a nice guy and give notice, they know they won't need you anymore and don't pay invoices.

Click to expand...

Hopefully that’s not the case. What I told them was that I was leaving once my home sold. What they heard was I’m leaving very soon so bury me in work.

Mike L said:

Hopefully that’s not the case. What I told them was that I was leaving once my home sold. What they heard was I’m leaving very soon so bury me in work.

Click to expand...

My customers do the same when they or I go on vacation. "Can you get this, this, and this done before you leave or do this, this, and this before I get back"

So back in June I got a letter from my liability insurance underwriter regarding NON RENEWAL. Reason: NO MARKET AVAILABLE. I called me insurance agent the next day. He assured me he was on it. Fast forward to yesterday.........called insurance agent and asked what the disposition was........Uhhhhh......haven't found a carrier yet (I think he forgot). My policy expires on Sunday 8/21. WTF!!! Now I had been calling my insurance agent back in July and filled out additional insurance forms to find another carrier. I had also called a few other insurance agents and came up with ZERO. My problem (this is my belief) is that I also service fire trucks as well as heavy equipment. Nobody wants (or it seems) that liability.
So today has been spent at home, on the phone, making calls, replying to email for additional info. I am soooo pissed off right now its not funny!!
I had talked to this particular insurance company (its the owner I'm dealing with) and asked him about replacement value instead of salvage value for the service trucks...........he didn't know what I was talking about............I should have started digging right then and there.
Anyway..........my day. Going on vaca next week so no work...........I'm sure I'll be hunting for insurance while on vaca.
The joys of being your own boss!! IT'S GREAT!!

I don't know how your state laws are concerning the recovery of insurance claims but all that I know of use what is called "Actual Cash Value" and the policy will define that. It usually means cost new less depreciation. The other method of valuing a loss is "Market Value" or what it would cost to replace your asset with "like kind, quality and quantity." In my state the law prescribes the procedure. Find a comparable vehicle offered for sale within a 25 mile radius and make adjustments for measurable differences. There is no provision anywhere that I know of for using an agreed value policy in a commercial insurance policy. Agreed value policies are usually done for high end collectible cars and has many limitations attached in the policy. Type of storage and its location and number miles driven are the big issues on those policies.

All this is a pain so most of us just figure a wreck will be a write off and only get a large liability policy with an umbrella on top.

Good Luck!

Thanks John,
I appreciate the info.
Replacement value is cost of new truck, minus depreciation for years in service and mileage. Actual cash value is cost paid for truck, minus depreciation for years and in service and mileage. Then we can get into market value, salveage value, and however else they want to try and save their money that you've paid in. So instead of getting a check for $55k (what I paid for the truck) minus the 5 years and 160k miles, the insurance company would base it off a new 2023 Peterbilt with Maintainer body and then depreciate it from there. Less ouch but higher premiums.
Never have had a claim in the 15 years I've been doing this. Frustrating!!

Here in Buffalo,NY it's almost impossible to get snowplowing insurance. No companys want to write it. The premiums guys are paying are incredible. Too many slip and falls getting paid huge payouts.

oarwhat said:

Here in Buffalo,NY it's almost impossible to get snowplowing insurance. No companys want to write it. The premiums guys are paying are incredible. Too many slip and falls getting paid huge payouts.

Click to expand...

So customers of a business slip and fall and then sue the snow removal company for "poor performance"? I was always under the impression those events were covered under the property owners insurance. Guess the property insurers have decided its easier to go after the maintance guys. What's going to happen when nobody will push snow any more?

It may be time to visit a lawyer instead. Have Monkey, LLC (or other legal entity) become your employer. You still own the truck, but lease it to Monkey, LLC. You sell all your tools to the LLC on a note. You are now an employee of a company with few assets. Any profits at the end of the year are paid to the owners of the LLC. An awful lot of big firms do it that way. Is it legal? If done correctly. Is it ethical? As far as I'm concerned its not great but if it keeps you in business providing clients honest services its good.

I guess I'm confused, are you having troubles just insuring your truck, or is this your insurance as a business covering your general liability?

If you haven't been a LLC or S or C corp, I can see you having trouble getting insurance. You need to do what terex herder suggests, incorporate. Its going to be more paperwork, but it will limit your personal liability.

crane operator said:

So customers of a business slip and fall and then sue the snow removal company for "poor performance"? I was always under the impression those events were covered under the property owners insurance. Guess the property insurers have decided its easier to go after the maintance guys. What's going to happen when nobody will push snow any more?

Click to expand...

Here in wonderful New York State everyone gets sued. Contractor, property owner, Renter of property and anyone else they can think of. Judges used to dismiss the case if contractor could show they were onsite plowing or had salted. Now I've heard from a few fellow contractors the judge says that's not good enough. This person got hurt and it's YOUR fault. So insurance companies have to pay out big bucks.

Here in Washington State there is mandatory state insurance for employees. When employees are covered by the State L&I they give up their right to sue for on the job injury. We don't get a lot of snow plowing on the west side of the state because it just rains 98% of time in the populated areas. I know on the east side where there sometimes is a lot of snow, the issue is damage to cars parked in the streets.

I have heard about the snow plowing insurance dilemma from some of my customers. The insurance is exorbanent. The plow rates for the towns are miniscule. If you have a state route, you need to have your truck set up and ready to go at the state shed in October or November. They pay out a monthly stipend, but the snow storms are dwindling so your not getting the $125-150/hr consistently anymore. On top of that, the corrosion from the salt, you need to have GPS and a monitor for the salt spreading you put down..........these are provided by the state and they put it in.........still a pain in the ass. Then you can be out for days on end. Always fun!! I have a few customers who run plow trucks...........always used ex state trucks that they picked up for a bahgin!!

So I'm an LLC.............if I hire myself out to be an employee, then slip and fall while climbing up into the back of the truck, I could call Dewey, Screwem, and Howe and sue the company for millions??!!!
Man...........why didn't I think of this before!!! GENIUS!!!LOL

Monkeywithawrench said:

So I'm an LLC.............if I hire myself out to be an employee, then slip and fall while climbing up into the back of the truck, I could call Dewey, Screwem, and Howe and sue the company for millions??!!!
Man...........why didn't I think of this before!!! GENIUS!!!LOL

Click to expand...

Yes, but you have to throw your boss under the bus to do it. Ok if you don't like your boss much, but thats a subject for a different level of help than is found on HEF.

terex herder said:

Yes, but you have to throw your boss under the bus to do it. Ok if you don't like your boss much, but thats a subject for a different level of help than is found on HEF.

Click to expand...

I disagree. It would be very entertaining to help him if that’s the level of insanity he’s on.

oarwhat said:

Here in wonderful New York State everyone gets sued. Contractor, property owner, Renter of property and anyone else they can think of. Judges used to dismiss the case if contractor could show they were onsite plowing or had salted. Now I've heard from a few fellow contractors the judge says that's not good enough. This person got hurt and it's YOUR fault. So insurance companies have to pay out big bucks.

Click to expand...

Same here it's the shotgun lawsuit approach sue every company with an insurance policy involved and collet a little from all of them. I think the insurance companies don't mind it much as they can spread liability around.

As far as the LLC discussion goes no way in hell I would operate a business that wasn't at least an LLC for liability protection. LLC's are pass through entities as far as taxation goes so nothing changes for an individual.

I’ve been chasing a stalling issue on a timberpro Feller buncher most of the summer now. Started out running itself out of fuel once a day and we chased it and tried a bunch of stuff, the last being a new high pressure fuel pump. Now it still stalls but doesn’t run out of fuel. He’s been getting some can bus and voltage codes that pop up and go away without storing the codes and it bogs down several times before stalling. It will fire right back up but will continue to bog unless he lets it sit for 10 minutes or so. Then it will fire up and run fine. Damndest thing I’ve ever seen. Anyway, I remembered a couple summers ago we chased a charging issue and found a broken 100 amp mega fuse in an electrical panel. Just for shits and giggles I looked in the panel today. Found another mega fuse that powers the cab. And I could wig it. Removed it and split off the plastic case and found this. Could this be my issue? Could it be that simple?

Yep could be. Especially if fuel pump in trunk run off of that fuse. If fuel pump in trunk doesn’t run will have bogging issues

I would bet money on it. A heavy equipment mechanic neighbor of mine is always telling me how sensitive JD grounds are. Caused me a lot of issues with a bad ground and low power on a 4045 until it was remedied. I could see that fuse there getting hot and moving just enough to cause a voltage drop, especially with all of the vibration in these forestry machines.